Zenobia of Palmyra

In recent years, much ink has been spilt over the famous – although never thoroughly assessed – ruler of Palmyra. In 2005, the eminent Paul Veyne had already devoted a few insightful pages to the subject, with claims that are certainly open to debate, in one of his most enjoyable books.

This book provides a visual reconstruction of Palmyra, a World Heritage Site situated in Syria, which flourished in Greco-Roman times. Palmyra is situated in a desert oasis and served as a vibrant caravan station on the Silk Road connecting the Roman world with the East. It has been called 'the Queen of the Desert' and 'Venice of the Sands'.In 2015-2016 the city was conquered by ISIS who destroyed its monuments and museum, also killing several of its inhabitants. Their aim was to erase the memory and identity of the place, its people and our common heritage. However, through the use of modern technology including photogrammetry, digital imagery and 3D modelling, it has been possible to recreate the documented monuments, thus overcoming to some extent the trauma, cultural destruction and loss. The book unveils the rediscovery of the site by the West and revives and reconstructs the ancient city through images and history. The reader is taken through the spectacular city and its past by providing the information to follow the roots and development of the site, its monuments and its people through the ages, including rulers such as Queen Zenobia. The combination of visualization and written accounts interlink the environment and its people, the monuments and archaeological small finds by using ancient written sources, old photographs, new imagery, 3D models and 3D printing. Thus this ancient site and its past is revived in multiple dimensions. Monuments are visualized as digitally reconstructed ruins or as complete virtual models. This text is therefore the perfect guide for readers who wish to immerse themselves visually in the history of the area and to discover more about the archaeology and its preservation using diverse methods employing modern technology.

Historical sources present us with two Zenobia of Palmyra characters. In the Greco-Latin sources she is the leader of a great rebellion against the Roman Empire. That is the most commonly known version. There is, however, a second historiography of Zenobia. This Arab version presents us with a very different tale, in which Zenobia (al-Zabbaʾ) struggles in the context of Arab tribal warfare. This article is concerned with the way modern Arab authors have revived the memory of Zenobia. A key question will be which version of history was adopted by modern Arab authors, and why. This will involve a close reading of texts that will bring into play discussion of ideology, (anti-)colonialism and gender equality.

Hailing from the Syrian city of Palmyra, a woman named Zenobia (also Bathzabbai) governed territory in the eastern Roman empire from 268 to 272. She thus became the most famous Palmyrene who ever lived. But sources for her life and career are scarce. This book situates Zenobia in the social, economic, cultural, and material context of her Palmyra. By doing so, it aims to shed greater light on the experiences of Zenobia and Palmyrene women like her at various stages of their lives. Not limiting itself to the political aspects of her governance, it contemplates what inscriptions and material culture at Palmyra enable us to know about women and the practice of gender there, and thus the world that Zenobia navigated. It reflects on her clothes, house, hygiene, property owning, gestures, religious practices, funerary practices, education, languages, social identities, marriage, and experiences of motherhood, along with her meteoric rise to prominence and civil war. It also ponders Zenobia's legacy in light of the contemporary human tragedy in Syria.

Zenobia van Palmyra is een bekende figuur in de literatuur en kunsten van Europa en Arabië. Het beeld dat deze bronnen schetsen van de derde-eeuwse vorstin is zonder uitzondering kleurrijk, maar allesbehalve uniform. Het jaar 2008 markeerde een opleving in de bestudering van deze intrigerende koningin: op 24 mei 2008 vond het congres Zenobia, vorstin tussen Oost en West plaats, en in augustus dat jaar volgde de oprichting van een naar de Palmyreense genoemde stichting (www.stichtingzenobia.nl). De gebundelde essays van het Eerste Zenobiacongres werden gepubliceerd bij de Wereldbibliotheek in Armada 53. Ter gelegenheid van het tienjarig bestaan van Stichting Zenobia geeft Uitgeverij Verloren deze uitverkochte Armada uit in een nieuw jasje, als extra deel in de Zenobiareeks. De bundel laat kenners uit verschillende disciplines aan het woord over Zenobia.

This article has been published under the title ‘Rome en Palmyra in de crisis van de derde eeuw n.Chr.’, in Phoenix 53.1 (2007) 5-22; it has been translated (lightly revised, but not updated) into English to accompany the talk 'Palmyra on the Silk Road', to be presented at the International Symposium on Hellenistic Legacies on the Silk Road, Nankai University, Tianjin, China, August 17-20, 2018. The figures referred to in the text can be found at  http://www.academia.edu/27304279/Rome_en_Palmyra_in_de_crisis_van_de_derde_eeuw_na_Christus_Phoenix_53.1.pdf.

For centuries, Palmyra and its ruins have fascinated archeologists, historians and artists. yet, Palmyra has been a terrain for struggles as well. The emergence of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) as a new actor in the Syrian conflict has pushed the damages of heritage monuments and sites to a greater extent, and has also added further ideological meanings to targeting cultural heritage. As a consequence, these atrocities have unleashed debates on a broader level. Several initiatives and projects worldwide have started to document the damages in Palmyra, and to prepare plans for its restoration. This paper focuses on the case of Palmyra, in the light of the atrocities committed by the ISIS militant in summer 2015. Destruction has become a part of Palmyra's long history, and reconstructing the damages cannot erase the event that inflicted the destruction.

The Epitome de Caesaribus is a short, summarizing Latin historical work known as a breviarium or epitomé. This brief summary was written in the late 4th or early 5th century and summarizes the history of the Roman Empire from the time of Augustus to the time of Theodosius the Great in 48 chapters. Between chapters 32 and 35 the Epitome tells the story of the Empire under Gallienus, Claudius Gothicus, Quintillus and Aurelian. This was the most anarchic time of the soldier emperor era; the imperatores had to face not only the German and Sassanid attacks, but also the economic crisis, the plague and the counter-emperors, as well. The Scriptores Historiae Augustae calls these counter-emperors the “thirty tyrants” and lists 32 usurpers, although there are some fictive imperatores in that list too. The Epitome knows only 9 tyrants, mostly the Gallic and Western usurpers. The goal of my paper is to analyze the Epitome’s chapters about Gallienus’, Claudius Gothicus’ and Aurelian’s counter-emperors with the help of the ancient sources and modern works.

The third century is known for its many usurpers. Ancient and modern writers perceive them as direct opponents of the imperial throne. The author compares the iconography on the coins of these usurpers (AD 235-285) in order to trace what political ambitions they advertised. The analysis points out that the coin types did not always represent the usurpers as direct rivals to the imperial throne. On some coin types, the lack of imperial titles and the focus on regional elements hint more at purely regional claims or the ambition of becoming a local imperial deputy. The increase of 'imperial messaging' on coin types can reveal when imperial aspirations of local chieftains started to grow. This often meant the end of their leadership. The article demonstrates how coinage remains an invaluable source to reconstruct the institutional crisis of the third century, and how ideas of regional particularism may gradually have triggered the later tetrarchic division of the Empire.

In this article, I explore the question in how far Palmyra can be considered part of the Silk Road. The question is partly a matter of definition, partly of source criticism: what is, in general, understood by the Silk Road in geographical, temporal and material terms, and how does Palmyra fit into this picture? The question is prompted by the fact that Palmyra is rarely indicated on maps depicting eastern and western trade, while it does have many characteristics, as well as a geographical position, that makes it an important factor in eastern-western relationships. Given the new research that has been done on Palmyra in the past decade, it may be worthwhile to reconsider its position with respect to the Silk Road. It will be concluded that Palmyra is essential in defining any notion of either ‘Silk Road’ or ‘Silk Route(s)'.

This volume explores the oasis city of Palmyra in the Syrian Desert through an in-depth examination of the site’s unique archeology and history. Palmyra is best known as the Pearl in the Desert of the Roman Empire, a vibrant living center that stood at the heart of flourishing international networks of trade and politics in the first three centuries CE. It is from this period that the vast majority of the material and written sources stem, and it is Palmyra’s position as a city, caught between the empires of Rome and Parthia, that is the main focus of the book. However, the volume also touches on Palmyra before the Roman period as well as after Zenobia’s rebellion and the city’s sack in 272 CE and again in 273 CE, and it traces Palmyra’s developments over the years—from the events of the Umayyad period to the arrival of the first European tourists. Finally, the volume explores the tragic eruption of civil war in Syria in the twenty-first century, showing how in modern times, Palmyra has once again become enmeshed in international political networks as well as being drawn into global debates about the trade and protection of cultural heritage.

An antoninianus with a new reverse type, minted at Antioch during the sole reign of Gallienus and depicting a PROFECTIO ceremony, has recently come
to light. This coin may help to augment our understanding of that emperor’s travels and imperial intentions towards the eastern provinces during
what has been generally seen as his ‘sedentary Roman period’ between 263 and 265 AD.

Nemorensis di Aricia volle simboleggiare la raggiunta supremazia di Roma sulla confederazione delle città della lega latina. Servius perpulit tandem ut Romae fanum Dianae populi Latini cum populo Romano facerent 6 . Servio infine indusse a erigere a Roma un tempio a Diana del popolo latino insieme ai Romani. Le città della Lega infatti avevano precedentemente scelto, come luogo di riunione, il santuario che sorgeva nel bosco (nemus) di Aricia. Tale santuario, che la tradizione voleva fondato da Oreste per conservare il simulacro della dea Artemide portato da Efeso, venne poi trasformato in tempio dal dittatore della lega Egerio. Lucum Dianium in nemore Aricino Egerius Laeuius Tusculanus dedicauit dictator Latinus. hi populi communiter: Tusculanus, Aricinus, Lanuuinus, Laurens, Coranus, Tiburtis, Pometinus, Ardeatis Rutulus 7 . Nella foresta di Aricia il dittatore latino Egerio Levio Tusculano consacrò un bosco sacro a Diana. Questi popoli insieme: Tusculano, Aricino, Lanuvino, Laurente, Corano, Tiburtino, Pometino, Ardeate Rutulo. L'origine del culto di Diana si rintraccia proprio nell'area dei Castelli Romani, precisamente a Nemi dove ancora oggi si trovano i resti del Tempio di Diana Nemorensis. Altri Diania erano situati nei territori del Lazio antico e della Campania. Quello di Diana Tifatina, uno dei più famosi, sorgeva presso Capua, alle pendici del monte Tifata, in un luogo ameno, ricco di boschi e, ancora come ci conferma Plinio: Est in suburbano Tusculani agri colle, qui Corne appellatur, lucus antiqua religione Dianae sacratus a Latio 8 . C'è su un colle suburbano della campagna di Tusculi, che è chiamato Corne, un bosco di antica santità consacrato a Diana dal Lazio. L'ubicazione boschiva dei templi testimonia l'aspetto silvano di Diana che, come la greca Artemide, è dea della caccia e del mondo silvestre. 6 Livio I 45. 7 Catone Origines fr. 58. 8 Plinio H.N. XVI 242.

The portrayal of Zenobia of Palmyra in the Historia Augusta
must be regarded with suspicion as a faithful representation
of historical events. When considered as a narrative, however, this
episode becomes a discourse on the correlation of power, gender,
and ethnicity. In a new reading of the Life of Aurelian (HA 22–34),
I argue that the construction of the episode’s plot as well as devices
such as variable focalization and dramatic irony call attention to the
nexus of power, gender, and cultural identity, and ultimately destabilize
the assumption that power is Roman and masculine.

Do you remember when you thought that you would never know just who many of the people that you heard about in history really were? Well, now that is about to come to an end. The reason why? Because ancient history was an "inside job"-as was the creation of religion. The impression that we were given is that historians and chroniclers of the past were recording events involving ordinary people, giving us a slice of the real life of the people of the time. But what they were really giving was info about about themselves, their family, and royal relatives. Those writers themselves, were among those who were in power at the time, not just random people from among the masses. And that is why we can find out just who those that were writing and who they were about, really were. And, I have known who many of these were for several years now and sharing what I know. Below is the genealogical information showing the descent of 'St. Jerome' from Arrius Calpurnius Piso. It has made me very happy to see the work of others who have exposed the truth in history and whose work has let us all know that what we were once taught was a whitewash of history. We now know that Columbus was not the hero that many of us had once thought. Nor were a number of others who are now being exposed for who they really were. This, is a very exciting time. We are witnessing true history being revealed. They used to think that Nero was a bad guy. Some are now exposing that as a lie. The same goes with Napoleon. And, Mother Theresa has been exposed by Hitchens and others for what she really was. Others had already begun to expose Father Junipero Serra, as a cruel and wicked man who sadistically tortured and killed native Americas who would not submit to conversion to Catholicism. And so, on goes the process of revealing the truth of our past. Some may say that we are "re-writing" history. Well, yes and no. We are simply correcting it with new information. If it is rewriting it, then it is in the same sense that science "re-writes" what we once thought about our world. This is what we call "progress" and advancing our knowledge. We are now well into the 21st Century, and it is about time that we advance accordingly.

Für ein Dutzend Jahre, von der Niederlage Valerians bei Karrhai (260 n. Chr.) bis zur Einnahme der Stadt durch Kaiser Aurelian (272 n. Chr.) war Palmyra ein Brennpunkt römischer Reichspolitik. Als Roms Herrschaft über seine orientalischen Provinzen unter dem kombinierten Druck sasanidischer Offensiven und der Einbrüche wandernder Stämme an den nördlichen Reichsgrenzen zusammenzubrechen drohte und selbst Großstädte wie Antiocheia dem Feind ihre Tore öffneten, schlug die Stunde des Septimius Odaenathus, des Exarchen von Palmyra, den das zeitgenössische 13. Sibyllinische Orakel zum „sonnengesandten Löwen“, zur quasi-messianischen Rettergestalt verklärte. Unter Führung des Palmyreners gingen die Reste der geschlagenen Legionen, verstärkt um das Aufgebot der Oasenstadt, in die Offensive und standen wenig später vor den Toren der persischen Hauptstadt Ktesiphon. Odaenathus starb 167 oder 168 n. Chr. unter ungeklärten Umständen; die Nachfolge traten seine Witwe Zenobia und der gemeinsame, noch unmündige Sohn Vaballathus an. Während beide sich als legitime Erben des mit weitreichenden Sondervollmachten ausgestatteten Odaenathus betrachteten, konnten Roms Kaiser den einzigartigen Autonomiestatus Palmyras nicht länger akzeptieren. Ein Krieg war unvermeidlich; ihn konnte Palmyra gegen das wieder erstarkte Rom nur verlieren.
Wie ist der kometenhafte Aufstieg des Septimius Odaenathus zu erklären? Was waren die Voraussetzungen dafür, daß Palmyra – im römischen Reichsverband – zu einer autonom agierenden politischen Größe heranreifte? Und wo lagen die Gründe für das Zerwürfnis zwischen Odaenaths Erben und den Kaisern in Rom? Der Beitrag versucht sich in der Beantwortung dieser gerade auch für das Verständnis der römischen Herrschaft insgesamt elementaren Fragen.

A number of modern Arab thinkers have compared the Story of al-Zīr, a little-known Arabic folk epic, with accounts of the Trojan War and the Oresteia. After dealing with the pitfalls of comparing stories from different cultures, I argue for criteria to distinguish between weak and strong parallels, and then analyse the similarities between the story of
Jalīla, that constitutes the first part of the Story of al-Zīr, and the Graeco-Roman stories of Helen’s abduction and Clytemnestra’s murder of Agamemnon. Such a comparative approach, based on the method of folktale studies, sheds new light on a number of much-discussed elements from the story of Clytemnestra, such as “blameless Aegisthus” (Odyssey 1.29), Agamemnon’s minstrel, and the purple fabric and “bathtub” that figure as stage props in the Oresteia.

This article points to the many parallels between the book of Judith and the Arabic account of the life and death of Zenobia of Palmyra. By comparing these two stories with the episode about Zopyros in Herodotus’ Histories and the episode about Sinon in accounts of the fall of Troy, it argues that these similarities can only be explained if we assume that the book of Judith and the Arabic Zenobia Legend are adaptations of the same Vorlage, an earlier story that contained a Holofernes motif (heroine kills enemy) and a Sinon motif (enemy deceives heroine). When this Vorlage was adapted to create the book of Judith, the part of the deceiving Sinon was adapted to create the role of the sincere Achior, whereby he lost his function in the story and became a blind motif.

This conference had its genesis in casual conversations between colleagues from different departments in AAIA, CCANESA, CCWM (et al), united around the possibility of a joint outreach project in 2019. Initially, we had planned on running a short series of in-house workshops, but the interest in the topic of ancient historical women soon outgrew this aim. With the help and support of many colleagues at the University of Sydney, the project developed into an online international conference (with a little push from the global pandemic), representing many different research groups both at the University of Sydney and beyond. The response to our call for papers was enthusiastic and genuinely interdisciplinary. The breadth and diversity of scholarship is both stunning and humbling.

En el presente trabajo nos centraremos en un territorio concreto durante un periodo determinado, Palmira (imagen I) veremos sus inicios, su ascenso y relación con las potencias prominentes del momento como eran el Imperio romano y el Imperio persa, además de señalar el importante papel de sus dirigentes deteniéndonos en el caso concreto de Zenobia. Para poder obtener esta información contamos con abundantes y diversas fuentes aunque usualmente estas hacen referencia a los acontecimientos que tiene que ver con el ámbito político y militar y sus relaciones con los dos Imperios anteriormente mencionados Para conocer tribus, grupos étnicos, reinos y estados más alejados de la perspectiva greco-latina e irania dependemos de testimonios más restringidos, especialmente de menciones y fragmentos de historia insertos en la tradición coránica 1 . Las obras como Geografía de Estrabón o la Historia Natural de Plinio el Viejo nos dan una información puramente etnográfica y geográfica, aunque altamente alterada. La epigrafía generada aporta más información relativa a aspectos sociales, culturales y eventualmente también políticos, otras ciencias también utilizada para conocer la historia de Palmira han sido la epigrafía y la arqueología. El valor arqueológico especial de Palmira es que muestra los efectos del intercambio entre Oriente y Occidente en una comunidad impregnada de los intereses e influencias de ambos. 2 Actualmente tras los recientes acontecimientos acaecidos en esta zona llevar a cabo esta actividad es realmente difícil, además de la enorme perdida de patrimonio que se ha producido.

Rođena sam kao žena, ali sam delima dokazala da nisam nimalo slabija od najboljih među muškarcima. (Polijen, Stratageme, VIII, 26)

Oduvek su muškarci odlučivali o ratu, miru i odbrani zajednice. Pokušaji žena da zađu u taj isključivo muški zabran smatrani su uvredom muškosti. Ovom knjigom je autor, pišući o ženama koje su se istakle u ratnom zanatu, ukazao na brojne onovremene i savremene predrasude.
Pored slavnih vladarki i predvodnica vojski − Budike, Kleopatre, Teute ili Zenobije u knjizi ćete pronaći i manje poznate, danas bezimene heroine, koje su pokazale hrabrost i odlučnost na različite načine aktivno učestvujući u mnogim ratovima.
Knjiga vas nenametljivo vodi od mitološkog sveta neustrašivih Amazonki do Mavije, poslednje velike ratnice koja je živela u epohi smiraja sveta antičkog Mediterana. Sve one bile su potpuna suprotnost uobičajenoj predstavi o ženi stvorenoj isključivo za kućevne poslove jer su bez zazora učestvovale u javnim i državnim, muškim poslovima. One su u mnogo čemu bile jednake, ako ne i bolje od muškarca sa kojima i protiv kojih su se borile. Nalik grčkoj boginji Atini Promahos postale su ideal koga su se muškarci istovremeno plašili i divili mu se.

La ruta que atraviesa el desierto arábigo, desde el estrecho de Mandeb hacia el Golfo Pérsico, pasando por la actual capital del reino, Riad, tiene como final la ciudad de Gerrha en el actual reino de Bahrain. Al norte de esta encontramos Spasinou Charax, destacada capital portuaria del reino Mesene próximo a la desembocadura del Tigris y el Éufrates. La ciudad resulta un punto de paso obligado para las mercancías procedentes de la India. Se trata de una de las puertas de entrada de los productos preciosos a través del Golfo. Desde aquí las mercancías ascendían por el Éufrates hasta Vologésiade (Vologesias), Seleuceia (Seleucia del Tigris), Babilonia y Dura Europos, donde llegarían parte de las caravanas comerciales procedentes de Palmira. Toda la zona actuaría a modo frontera natural entre territorio romano y el parto, tratándose de una de las zonas limítrofes bajo la influencia de Roma.

Gracias a las fuentes literarias romanas y chinas hoy sabemos que los territorios incluidos en el actual Oriente Medio debieron entenderse como los límites mejor conocidos para chinos y romanos. Superados estos márgenes la mitificación del más allá procuró al imaginario popular una concepción irreal de estos lugares y gentes, donde se hallaban riquezas incalculables.

Y fue en este caluroso desierto sirio-arábigo, donde los más experimentados sinodiarcas, jefes de las caravanas se aventuraron a comercializar entre imperios. Conocedores de las rutas caravaneras y de los lugares donde podían proveerse de los víveres y agua necesaria para mantener a personas y animales con vida.

La existencia de una lista de cerca de treinta inscripciones vinculadas al comercio de caravanas en la ciudad de Palmira permite hacernos una idea de como funcionaron estas rutas.

El mantenimiento de la frontera romana oriental siempre fue un quebradero de cabeza para los generales y emperadores romanos que, desde Carras (53 a.C.), se enfrentaron a la magnitud y cohesión del Imperio Parto y, después, Sasánida, desde el siglo III d.C. Es en este marco geopolítico tan complejo en el cual el comercio a través de la Ruta de la Seda fluye o se interrumpe según las vicisitudes políticas del momento.

Durante el correinado de los emperadores Valeriano y Galieno (253-260), y después solamente de Galieno (260-268), el Imperio Romano experimenta cambios políticos y territoriales muy importantes, a la vez que se llevan a cabo nuevas soluciones para afrontar los problemas que el complicado siglo presenta. Además de los múltiples usurpadores que surgen durante este período (hasta 30 registrados durante el reinado de Galieno), el poder central, con sede en Mediolanum y Antioquía, debe hacer frente, a partir del año 260, a una serie de realidades políticas alternativas de gran tamaño, como son el Imperio Galo (260-274) y el Imperio de Palmira (260-273), que presentan problemáticas y discursos diversos, complementarios y, a veces, antagónicos respecto al poder imperial central.

El surgimiento del Imperio de Palmira se gesta en un marco de inestabilidad y guerras posterior a la intervención de Valeriano en Oriente y se actúa en varias fases con diversos grados de autonomía. Protagonista indiscutible, según las fuentes, de este fenómeno es Septimius Udaynath, Odenato en latín, descendiente de una potente familia de Palmira, cónsul sufecto en el 258 y nombrado supuestamente Corrector totius Orientis por el mismo Galieno. Él y su mujer, la famosa Zenobia, organizaron, según las fuentes escritas, una realidad territorial paralela y a veces problemática. Pero ¿Creó Odenato realmente un estado paralelo al de Roma? ¿Cuales fueron las dinámicas? ¿Cómo fue su cursus honorum?

El objetivo de este poster es el de dilucidar estas cuestiones y ver hasta qué punto las fuentes literarias nos dicen o nos ocultan acerca de la naturaleza de esta realidad política alternativa, contrastándola con las fuentes arqueológicas y epigráficas disponibles, a la vez que se analizan las dinámicas comerciales que permitieron que la ciudad de Palmira se erigiese como realidad autónoma de Roma, con las implicaciones económicas que comportaba, a mediados del siglo III d.C.

Caput eorum Thomna abest a Gaza nostri litoris in Iudaea oppido XXIIII XXXVII D p., quod dividitur in mansiones camelorum LXV. Deren Hauptstadt Thomna ist von der an unserer Küste in Judaea gelegenen Stadt Gaza 2.437.000 Schritte entfernt, die in 65 Kamelraststätten unterteilt wird. (Plinius naturalis historia 12,64 f.) Was wäre das Imperium Romanum ohne seine Straßennetze, seine Handelsrouten und seine damit verbundenen wirtschaftlichen Kontakte? Unter diesen zahllosen Straßen und Wegen galt ohne Zweifel die Seidenstraße mit ihrer südwestlichen Verlängerung, der Weihrauchstraße, zugleich als Kulturen verbindend und vernetzend.i So beschrieb Plinius der Ältere in seinem Werk über die Naturgeschichte, dass man von Timna bis Jerusalem, also die gesamte arabische Halbinsel, mit dem Kamel in ca. 30 Tagen durchqueren konnte, einen Weg, den auch der Orientwissenschaftler Ulrich Jasper Seetzen (1767-1811) im Auftrag von Herzog Ernst II. von Sachsen-Gotha-Altenburg bestritt, als er im Jemen auf seiner letzten Forschungsreise unter ungeklärten Umständen verstarb. Zahlreiche Münzen der vorislamischen und islamischen Zeit hat Seetzen in seinem "Verzeichnis der für die Orientalische Sammlung in Gotha zu Damask, Jerusalem usw. angekauften orientalischen Manuscripte und gedruckten Werke, Kunst-und Naturprodukte. Gedruckt bei Breitkopf und Härtel in Leipzig 1810" beschrieben. Neben hunderten von antiken Münzen erwähnt er auch unter Punkt VI.14 seiner Bestandsliste den Erwerb altarabischer Münzen. Nehmen wir nun dies zum Anlass, die Münzen des alten Arabiens genauer zu untersuchen, indem wir entlang von Seetzens Spuren über die arabische Halbinsel wandeln und die numismatischen Schätze, die uns als Relikt einer vergangenen Gesellschaft geblieben sind, betrachten. Abb.1. Wichtige Handelspunkte und Münzstätten der arabischen Halbinsel Was versteht man unter Imitation?